Serbia says it will not hand over war suspect

Serbia's prime minister, Vojislav Kostunica, said yesterday that he would refuse to extradite any more war criminals, despite the threat that this could end American aid.

A deadline set by the US Congress to hand over high-ranking suspects, including the former Bosnian Serb military leader, Gen Ratko Mladic, expires at the end of the month. If Serbia fails to extradite Mladic by then, it stands to lose £55 million in foreign aid.

Mr Kostunica is a moderate nationalist who beat Slobodan Milosevic in the 2000 elections and ushered in a new democracy.

But radical nationalists led by Vojislav Seselj, who is on trial at the war crimes tribunal in The Hague, did well in December's parliamentary elections. So Mr Kostunica's government is in no hurry to co-operate with the tribunal.

In a policy speech this week outlining his programme, Mr Kostunica said that he wants co-operation with the tribunal to be "mutual".